Ancient Egypt for KidsSacred Barks

Barks: Traveling by boat was so common and normal to the ancient
Egyptians that they even had their Sun God travel around by
boat. In fact, many gods had a boat of their own. When a boat was used by an ancient Egyptian god, the boat
was called a bark.

Temple Barks: Every temple had at least one,
and usually more than one, bark within it, for the gods to use.
These barks were not full size. They were scale models. During
festivals and processions, barks were carried on poles through
the town by the
temple priests. Each bark
was decorated for a god. For example, the bark of Amon curved up
at each end, and each end was topped with a carving of a ram's
head. Temple barks were created by talented craftsmen.
Barks were sacred.

Bark Shrines: There were also bark shrines
placed along a procession route that were treated like resting
places for those in the parade. It was a safe place to stop, get a drink of something,
and take a break.